Aki Yashiro

From Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture. Japanese singer Aki Yashiro made her debut in 1971 and broke through with the 1973 single/album “Namida Goi” (Tearful Love). Her other hits include “Ai no Shuchaku-Eki” (At the End of Love’s Line), “Mou Ichido Aitai” (I Want to See You Again), “Onna Minato-Machi” (Seaside Town Woman), and “Funa Uta” (Boatman’s Song). In 1980, Yashiro won the 22nd Annual Japan Record Award with the song “Ame no Bojo” (Longing for Love in the Rain). She is the best-selling female enka singer of all time.

Yashiro is also a recognized painter. Her work was accepted five years in a row by the prestigious Société des Artistes Français (Society of French Artists) for its annual exhibition, earning her permanent associate membership.

In recent years she has expanded her musical horizons, releasing the jazz album Yoru no Arubamu (Songs Around Midnight) in 2012. The record was released on streaming services in 75 countries, the most for any album by a Japanese artist in history, and won her the Jazz Artist of the Year Award at the 2013 Billboard Japan Music Awards.

In March 2013, Yashiro performed at the renowned New York jazz club Birdland, and was joined on stage by jazz singer Helen Merrill.

In October 2015, Yashiro released the blues album Aiuta (Songs of Sorrow).
In 2016, Yashiro was appointed Cultural Ambassador to Japan by the Mongolian government.
In October 2017, Yashiro released the jazz album Yoru no Tsuzuki (The Night Continued).
In June 2018, Yashiro performed with Sylvie Vartan during the French pop singer’s last Japanese tour. In August she was awarded the Order of the Polar Star, Mongolia’s highest state honor presented to foreign citizens.
Since April 2019 Yashiro has been hosting the weekly TV show Yashiro Aki Ii Uta Ii Hanashi (Aki Yashiro’s Good Music, Good Stories) on the Japanese satellite TV channel BS11.

In 2021, the 50th anniversary of her debut, Yashiro was presented with the Grand Prize at the Matsuo Entertainment Awards for her spectacular achievements in the Japanese music industry. On September 25 of that same year, Yashiro released Yashiro Aki Besuto Hitto (Aki Yashiro’s Greatest Hits) to commemorate her 50-year singing career.